Optometry is a wonderful profession! I say this because I did not intentionally choose to study optometry. As a young university student who lacked the necessary career guidance to inform my study choices, I cast my net wide into the health sciences and ended up being offered a placement in optometry first. Safe to say, I grabbed the opportunity to get into a health science profession and resolved to make the most of it even though all I knew at the time was that the profession had something to do with eyes and glasses. That was 30 years ago (I still feel like I’m 35, though… lol), and the profession has been incredibly good to me. Hello dear young Optometry student, My name is Dr. Diane van Staden, Honorary Professor of Optometry at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa and Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Health and Social Development at the University of British Columbia in Canada. I have honestly had the best professional experiences in this beautiful profession of optometry. While I spent a very short time in actual clinical practice relative to the span of my career, it was that very experience that led me on a path of wanting to influence access to eye care on a much larger scale globally by contributing to developmental solutions for unmet eye care needs; be it upstream at the training level or downstream in service delivery expansion. This work afforded me the opportunity to travel to various parts of the world, network with other optometry and eye health professionals, and solve bigger global eye health problems. The dynamic nature of this work later inspired me to take my global perspective and experience into the classroom, inspiring the next generation of optometrists to be solution finders and the change they needed to see in this profession. That is why I am so thrilled to be writing this piece for your publication – an initiative to connect optometry students across the world who share similar challenges, can collectively identify solutions to these challenges, and share ideas on how they can make this profession better for yourselves, the patients you serve, as well as the next generation of students yet to come behind you.

Fifteen years of my career were spent in optometry education, training, and development. If there is one piece of advice I can give you, it is that YOU have the power to effect change – in your school, country, or the profession as a whole. What gaps or problems do you see? Believe in your ideas and the power of your voice to speak out against things that need to change; whether institutionally, at policy level, or within industry. As I was privileged to be a part of advocating for eye care and optometry to have more focus in global policy and national health plans, each of you can identify a purpose or cause you are passionate about and be the change you want to see or that needs to happen. Because of my passion for helping others identify and own their purpose, and based on my experience mentoring health professionals in pursuing a professional cause they are passionate about, I now host a career-focused podcast inspiring healthcare professionals of all backgrounds to build purposecentered careers. “But I am still a student,” you may say. Well, here’s the best part: this doesn’t have to start after graduation. You can start right now! Identify a career path that aligns with your natural strengths, interests, and passions; one that will allow you to grow exponentially and have a greater impact in your field while rewarding you with immense professional fulfillment. My final words of encouragement to you are: To be successful in optometry education, you have to develop a love for the profession. This will come when you serve with your heart and are convinced of the need for your skills and contributions while recognizing the value that you add. Stay curious – identify opportunities to go above and beyond. Challenge the norm/status quo – go outside the boundaries of the profession and see how you can contribute value in other professional spaces based on your skills and knowledge. Know that eye health is an integral part of overall health and well-being. So go out into the world and make a difference!
Yours in Optometry, 
Dr Diane.